Crisis of Faith
by vanrigsby
Summary: When Buffy died, Faith knew she had to go back to Sunnydale, to continue Buffy's work. But when the summer following Buffy's death ends with a ressurection, Faith is faced with the woman she betrayed, whose life she very nearly ruined. Faith is faced with the woman she loves. The woman she'll do anything to make things right with. (AU from the start of Season 6)
1. Prologue

**A/N: So I had a friend mention something a while back, and I'm finally starting a fic on it. It's my first super-long fic (I'm actually planning this one out - yikes!) so I'm nervous. But it's something I have always wanted to try.**

 **Huge thanks to my beta Alkeni for all your help. I appreciate it more than you could ever know. I literally could not have done this without you.**

 **Disclaimer: Faith owns me, but I own nothing.**

* * *

 _Dedicated to Jess._

 _Thanks for the idea. And all our mad chats._

* * *

"What?" Faith feels like the word comes out on a rasp, a barely-there whisper against her throat, which has closed up. She tries to remember to breath, but it's hard.

"Buffy's gone, Faith," Angel's voice is low and quiet. Normally, Faith would find that soothing. It's part of what's helped her over these couple of years. However, now it causes something in her to rise, growling and furious at his calm tone and demeanor when she's heard the news and it feels like an semitrailer has run over her head.

"She-" Faith has to stop, swallowing roughly around the lump that's formed in her throat. She battles down the anger that threatens to make an appearance, the fury warring with the grief in her chest. "Really?"

Angel's nod causes the crack in her heart to deepen, nearly shattering it completely. Buffy. Gone. Dead. How could this happen? Was it her fault? Was it because she wasn't good enough to stay and protect her?

"Faith," Angel's calm voice draws her gently back from the memories and worries clouding her mind. "Where'd you go?"

"Here with ya, Angel." And she is, except for this pesky prison glass separating them, and the fact that they're talking through a telephone. "What's gonna happen now?" Faith tries to keep her voice steady, and she's pleased that she manages it.

"I don't know."

It unsettles her that she hears this man, her teacher and her friend, say those words. Faith thinks of Sunnydale, now empty without the bubbly blonde to fill it. Now unprotected without a Slayer guarding it. She thinks of the Scoobies, who would undoubtedly try and cover for Buffy, but also undoubtedly fail. They're all human, nothing like a Slayer.

Nothing like her.

"I wanna go back," she says softly.

"What?"

Faith looks up from where her gaze has drifted to her fingernails. She knows he's heard her - vamp hearing is good like that. But he's going to make her repeat it. God, as much as she likes him, he can be a pain.

She heaves a breath, trying to make the words come to her again.

"I wanna go back," she finds it's easier to speak once she starts. "I wanna continue B's work."

And she does. It means going back and finally redeeming herself with the Scooby Gang. It means going out and fighting the good fight again. But it also means she'll have to leave here. Leave prison, where she belongs. Where she needs to stay and atone for her misdeeds and the very long list of bad things she's done. She needs to stay. Maybe suggesting going back was a bad idea.

"We can make that happen," Angel's voice, while soothing, startles her, and she clutches the phone just a little bit tighter in her hand.

"What?"

"We can get you out on parole. I can take you there."

"I don't know…" Faith feels the doubt almost like a physical presence, hovering over her shoulder.

"There's redemption to be found on the battlefield, Faith," Angel is quietly insistent, and some part of Faith is grateful for it. Another part is screaming that it's a bad idea, redemption can be found just as well here behind these walls, and can't the Scoobies drop by to chat instead?

"I'll talk to some people," Angel nods decisively, and Faith feels a mixture of worry and excitement drop into her stomach.

For Faith, the next three days seem to pass super-fast and super-slow all at once. She goes through the motions of eating, working out, pacing the yard. Crying silently in her bunk for hours before she sleeps. Spending every free moment rehearsing her apology to the gang. Then to each individual person. Giles. Xander. Willow. Dawn. Wesley. Cordelia. Her brain starts to swirl, thinking of all the atonement, all the apologies, all the things from the past that are creeping out from the shadows in her mind. There's so much. There's too much.

She swings back and forth on her decision to leave prison right up until the moment Cordelia walks her out the front doors. It had initially shocked her to see the other woman there, but she'd remembered that, hello, sunlight, and whilst Angel would have loved to come pick her up, it's a little hard to drive home if you're a pile of dust.

Faith lowers herself into the car beside Cordelia, the awkward tension nearly causing her to snap. She hears Angel's voice in her mind, reminding her that she can do this, she can make it, and apologies are difficult but necessary.

"Cordelia," Faith starts, and the other woman jumps a little in surprise.

"Yeah?"

"I'm sorry." This earns her a surprised sideways glance, but she continues. "For everything. I lost control. I hurt you. I'm sorry."

Cordelia looks like she's about to split in two, and Faith watches the internal struggle play out on her face.

"So, did they make you wear an orange jumpsuit and everything?" she asks, attempting a smile, and Faith figures this is a good sign. "Cause that stuff is _so_ not attractive. Or your colour."

After returning to Angel Investigations and apologising to Wesley, Faith hovers by the door, waiting while Angel speaks to his employees.

"Ready?" he finally says, and it takes everything in her to say yes, wave to Wesley and Cordelia, and follow him out the door.

* * *

"I was kidding," Faith says, casting a glance at the Summers' house from the front seat of Angel's car. "Totally kidding. Just take me back now."

"Go inside, Faith."

"I can work with you! I can fight the good fight with you and Cor and Wes."

"Faith."

"Seriously, I'm five by five. We came, we saw, we're leaving. Time to go."

"You go," Angel's using his no-nonsense tone, and he's leveled her with a glare. She's beginning to think it might not be so great to work with him if he keeps bugging her about this.

"Fine, I'm going," she opens the door without a second thought, hauling her duffel off the back seat after she's climbed out. "And Angel?" she says softly, after standing motionless for a few moments. His vampire hearing ensures that he hears her, even though she practically whispered it, and he turns to face her.

"Yeah?"

"Thanks."

"Go. Be good," he offers up a smile. The words are innocuous enough in themselves; it's a harmless phrase so many parents tell their children, or friends tell their friends. Coming from him, though, in this context, it means so much more. She returns his smile, and starts heading up the walk. Halfway there, she realises that he hasn't pulled away from the kerb, and it's probably because he's making sure she goes inside. Of course.

Hey, maybe she could just turn around, run down the path and leap into his car. Could that be an option?

 _Stop,_ she scolds herself, even as her feet come to a halt at the bottom of the stairs. _You have to do this._

It takes all of her strength to climb those few stairs. Uncertainty tugs at her, begging her to turn around, to run for the hills, to get the hell out of Dodge before something more goes wrong, before she messes up her relationship with these guys all over again. But something else in her, something more stubborn, urges her to take those few steps, and knock on the door.

There's a scuffle inside, and she hears a familiar voice shout 'I'll get it!'. Faith steels herself for coming face to face with Dawn. When the younger brunette opens the door, as Faith had expected, she's only visible for a few seconds before the door is shut in her face.

The quiet voice inside her grows louder, telling her to run away. Telling her she'll mess it up if she stays. Telling her they won't take her back. She hushes it with another knock to the door. This time, it's Willow who answers. When the door isn't immediately slammed, she figures it's a positive sign.

"Hey Red."

"Faith," Willow's tone is emotionless and flat.

"Look, Willow," Faith begins, automatically turning to look at Angel behind her. His car has pulled away, leaving nothing but inky blackness in his wake. She faces Willow again, heaving a breath before launching into her story of her time in prison, how she worked with Angel so hard. How she's sorry. How she wants so badly to make things right. Angel believes in her, and she's really ready to atone for all the things she's done wrong and every way she made the redhead's life a little bit harder, or just plain hellish.

"I wanna make it right. I couldn't make it right with-" Faith cuts herself off, Buffy's name on the tip of her tongue, stinging her eyelids with tears, causing her throat to tighten. "I'm sorry. For kidnapping you and threatening you and," she pauses, thinking of how exactly to phrase what she did, "turnin' this whole town into a shitshow. I'm not that person any more."

Faith runs out of steam, swallowing hard and meeting Willow's eyes. Her words are gone now, hovering in the air between them while Willow makes her decision. Faith can see the struggle behind her eyes, the conflict she's coming to recognise goes hand in hand with apologising to someone you've wronged so terribly. It hurts, but she knows it's necessary.

"You really worked with Angel?"

"He visited every week. Never missed one."

"But you worked with him?"

"Of course. I wanna be better. I promise." Why does it feel like she's begging for forgiveness and acceptance? Oh, right. Cause she is.

"And why are you here?"

"Like I told ya. I wanna fight the good fight. Get back to doing the right thing."

"Being the Slayer?"

They are both quiet for a long moment. Faith's not sure what's going through the other girl's head, but all she can think about are Buffy's incredible and stylish shoes she's got to fill, and how she can never hope to come close to it. But she'll try. Because that's what good people do. She wants, no _needs_ to continue Buffy's work here, and that means stepping up.

Willow eventually lets her inside, and Faith notices a swish of brown hair disappear around the corner at the top of the stairs, indicating Dawn's departure. Faith can't blame her. She did some awful things to her big sis, and that gives her a reason to be pretty pissed off. Angel had told her it would take time, some more than others. Dawn was gonna fit into the 'some' category, apparently.

Faith follows behind Willow as the redhead leads her into the living room. A girl Faith vaguely recognises as Willow's girlfriend stands up from one of the chairs.

"I thought it was you," she says, and Faith searches the recesses of her memory for the brunette's name. It stays stubbornly just out of reach, and Faith internally groans. Apologies are so much easier when you can start off with the person's name.

"Your aura fits much better in that body than it does in Buffy's," the girl smirks a little, one corner of her mouth twitching up, and Faith hopes she's correctly interpreting it as a joke.

"I'm sorry for bein' a bitch. Try again?" Faith offers one hand to the girl,understanding instantly how much she must mean to Willow if she's still sticking around. If she wants to make things right with the gang, she's got to make it right with their partners too. "I'm Faith."

"Tara," the girl slips her hand into Faith's, and it's warm and soft, like her ensuing smile. "You want something to eat?"

"God yes," Faith answers before she can stop herself. She bites the inside of her cheek, adding a hesitant "please?" onto her former statement. She's about to apologise when Tara laughs a little and heads towards the kitchen. Willow falls into step beside her girlfriend, and gestures for Faith to follow.

The kitchen looks about the same as Faith remembers it. Homely. Warm. Full of food. As Tara and Willow start to grab a couple of various food items, Faith leans awkwardly on the counter, unsure if she should help.

"Do you have somewhere to stay?" Tara asks as she hands Faith a bag of potato chips. Faith shakes her head, her gaze following Tara around the kitchen. She likes this girl already. Sweet, clean slate, and gives her food. Big points in Faith's eyes.

Tara glances at Willow, and Faith's eyes follow it. Willow gives her girlfriend a look back, and Faith stares down at her food. Based off that look, she assumes that they're doing that freaky mindspeak thing she's heard about. The raven-haired Slayer tugs open her chips and pops a couple in her mouth. Her brain starts to whir, calculating all the money she has, including the cash Angel has given her. With some quick calculations - and crossed fingers that inflation isn't a thing - she works out that if she goes back to that old motel she used to live in, she can live comfortably until-

"Stay here," Tara's soft voice interrupts her thoughts, and Faith looks up, startled.

"What?" she asks, then realises she has a mouthful of chips. After swallowing, she tries again. "What?'

"I guess you could crash on the couch," Willow places a glass of milk on the counter when she makes her addition, and Faith can tell it's with reluctance. But it's a huge positive that she's willing to let Faith stay in their home, right?

"I shouldn't take up space," Faith hesitates.

"Are you gonna go back to that motel?" Willow asks suddenly, and Faith cocks her head questioningly before nodding in understanding. Of course. Buffy must have told her. "Then you stay here. Not that place."

"But Dawn?" Faith looks towards the ceiling, knowing Dawn is somewhere up on that second floor. And she is _pissed_.

"I'll go talk to her," Tara offers, heading out of the room.

There's a few minutes of silence once Tara exits, and Faith sips her milk.

"Tara told me about what you said when you first met her. In the Bronze."

"I'm so sorry. It's actually really wicked that you found someone. It's a cool bonus that it's a chick. And she seems good. I'm happy for ya, Red."

"Thanks," Willow's answer seems automatic, and Faith takes the opportunity to eat another handful of potato chips.

"Look, Faith," something in Willow's tone causes the brunette to set her bag of chips down and focus hard on the redhead. "Not everyone's going to be as accepting as Tara is. I'm not. But she seems willing to give you a chance and I believe in her. You insulted her, yeah, but you did a whole bunch of worse stuff to everyone else."

"I know," Faith meets Willow's gaze. "I did some shitty stuff. I did some _really_ shitty stuff. But I gotta own up to it. I already did it in jail, now I just wanna make it right with you."

"Time will tell," is all Willow says, as she heads out of the kitchen, Faith on her heels.

They've already finished making up the couch by the time that Tara returns downstairs with Dawn. Faith's perched on the couch, trying to will herself not to be so tense about this. Her muscles aren't cooperating, though, but it's worth the effort. Faith spots Tara and Dawn before Willow - who is sitting across from her - does. Tara looks about the same as when she headed upstairs, if a little emotionally exhausted. Dawn, on the other hand, looks like the human version of a storm cloud. And Faith would know; she's seen that look in the mirror too many times before.

"Hey squirt," she smiles at Dawn.

"Faith."

The older brunette is taken aback by how Buffy-like the girl sounds, and she's speechless for a moment.

"I know I wasn't a great person, okay? I know I ruined everything. I'm sorry I became so awful. I'm sorry I messed up your life. I want to make it right."

"You believe her?" Dawn turns to Tara.

"I've been trying real hard to do better," Faith continues, hoping she's making progress with the teen. "Seeing Angel all the time!" she catches the momentary shock at the vampire's name, but pushes on. "I really am sorry, Dawn. Took me a long time 'fore I could say that and mean it. But I do now."

"Okay," Dawn shrugs, looking up at Tara and Willow again. When the brunette nods, the younger girl spins on her heel and heads up the stairs.

A few silent moments after Dawn leaves, Tara speaks up.

"I'm heading to bed."

"Me too," Willow chirps. "Don't destroy the house."

"'Night," Faith tells the couple, settling back onto the cushions as she watches them ascend the stairs. When they're halfway up, she can't help but say something.

"Wait," she calls quietly, half-hoping they don't hear. They do, though, and she purses her lips as they stop and turn to look at her. Damn. She hates saying stuff like this. "Thanks."

"See you in the morning," Tara says, taking Willow's hand, and they continue up the stairs.

The next morning, Faith is up and moving before anyone else in the house. Not that it's a surprise. She's still running on her prison sleep schedule, and that doesn't exactly allow for much of a sleep in. She folds the blankets, laying them at the end of the couch, and makes her way into the kitchen.

After rifling through the pantry and the fridge, Faith determines she's got all the fixings for bacon, eggs and waffles. The variety will be good, she reasons, and she's got no clue what the other ladies in the household like for breakfast, so having options is a good thing. The bacon is cooked and warming, and she's three-quarters of the way through making waffles when she hears someone approach.

"Breakfast?" she asks, without turning around, expecting it to be Willow or Tara. When she hears Dawn's response in the positive, she spins to face the teen in shock. "You're up?" It's surprising, given that she knows when she was Dawn's age, she would sleep in for as long as she possibly could. Dawn's clearly different.

"Yeah, getting out of bed is a thing people do," Dawn responds, sliding warily onto a stool at the counter.

"I meant that you're up before Red and her girl," Faith gets the bacon from the oven, and slides a waffle onto a plate. "Eggs?"

"Sunny side up," Dawn answers automatically, and then continues in the same fashion. "I'm usually up early. I watch TV really loud. Willow and Tara don't really ever want to get out of bed. I think they kind of hate moving here cause I'm the reason they have to get up and actually do things," Dawn's rambling now, and it reminds Faith of Buffy. She can't help but laugh at Dawn's insinuation, and the noise seems to startle Dawn, almost as though she didn't realise she was even speaking out loud. They stare at each other for a long moment, neither speaking, until Faith holds up the pan of bacon. "How much do you want?"

Surprisingly, it's only half an hour after Dawn that Willow and Tara show their faces. Their expressions morph from sleepy to surprised when they find Faith in the kitchen, and Dawn sitting at the counter. She gets up when the witches enter, and starts cracking eggs into the still-warm pan. When Faith starts loading up Tara and Willow's plates with waffles and bacon, she's pretty sure their eyebrows are going to disappear into their hairline. They both say thank you, though, and start eating, albeit warily. Halfway through, Willow puts down her silverware and sighs.

"We need to tell the others."

Later that day, Faith waits inside on the couch while Willow debriefs the Scoobies on the front porch. She assumes it's supposed to be to put some sort of a barrier between them, but it doesn't work all that well, what with Faith's Slayer senses allowing her to hear it all too clearly. She closes her eyes, praying to a god that she doesn't believe in that they give her the opportunity to redeem herself. They seem to have a lot to say.

Once they're in front of her, however, it's a different story. They're all deadly quiet for three minutes and twelve seconds. Not that Faith is counting.

"You look different," Xander says slowly. "Pri- Being good changed you." Faith lets one side of her mouth lift in a smirk at his attempted cover-up. They'd gotten all their frustrations out on the porch, so she's getting the leftovers. It's a good thing, she supposes.

"Better than a new haircut," she jokes back, but her guilt taps her on the shoulder and reminds her of what she did to Xander. "Look, Xander-"

"Don't apologise."

"Please," she starts, then stops abruptly, suddenly remembering Buffy's threat that she would beat her to death if she apologised. Her heart starts to ache, but she pushes on. "I gotta say this. You gotta know that I mean it. I was really lost back then. I had no control. I'm not sayin' it wasn't my fault or nothing, cause it was. I did shitty things. I nearly-" her voice cuts out on her abruptly, and she clears her throat in an attempt to get it back. "I nearly raped you. Damn near killed you too." She can't even look around at the Scooby Gang's faces. God, whatever happened to all that confidence she possessed once upon a time? She misses it. It always seems to desert her when she needs it the most. She takes in a breath, wishing for the millionth time that Angel were here. Or Buffy.

"I'm sorry," she manages to look him dead in the eye, and his gaze meeting hers spurs on her confidence. When Xander doesn't reply for a full forty-seven seconds - she's not counting or anything, of course - she gives up on waiting and uses that confidence to turn to look at Giles.

"Giles," she says, and he's already removing his glasses to clean them. She doesn't stop to debate whether that's a good thing or a bad thing, just presses on.

"I'm sorry I messed up so bad. I screwed it all up. I know ya probably would've helped me if I'd manned up and asked. I'm sorry I ruined everythin'. I'm sorry I wasn't the Slayer you needed me to be."

The ' _I'm sorry I wasn't Buffy'_ doesn't leave her lips, but judging by everyone's expressions, they've heard it just as loud in her silence as if she's screamed.

"Willow and Tara say you have been working with Angel, is that true?" Giles says after a long silence.

"All the time!" Faith jumps at the question. "Promise. Been tryin' real hard."

"Would you mind if we contacted him to confirm?"

"Nah, go ahead. He'll probably answer. I think he's sticking 'round for a bit in case you wanted to check in. Otherwise, Cordy can vouch for me."

There's another pause, and Faith wonders if she's done something wrong. If she's said something out of line. She replays her last few sentences in her head, but Giles' voice interrupts her thoughts.

"Thank you, Faith. For the apology, and for the return. We will keep an eye on you, though, you must understand. Now, Willow, I believe you promised tea?"

"Oh, yeah!" Willow leaps up and practically sprints towards the kitchen.

Faith watches as everyone collectively stands and starts to head out of the room. She drops her gaze to her hands, picking at the edge of one nail absently, figuring it's best to let them have some alone time to talk about it all. To talk about her.

"You're Faith," there's a voice that comes from nowhere, and it causes Faith to look up quickly. She could have sworn she was alone.

"Yeah," she answers, trying to place this girl in her mind. Did she meet her once before her world went to shit?

"You had sex with Xander." It's a statement, not a question, and Faith starts to piece it together. The way this chick was hanging off Xander earlier reminds her that she's seen them in a situation like this before, only she was looking at them through Buffy's eyes. They hadn't really spoken then, because this girl had thought she was Buffy.

"I did," she's unsure of what else to say. Is this the place for another apology? God, she wishes Angel was here.

"Are you going to have sex with him again? Because we're in a relationship which means I'm having sex with him and you can't."

"Hey, no, I'm five by five," Faith holds up her hands in a defensive position. She really wasn't planning on having sex with Xander again, _especially_ if he was in a relationship. The old Faith wouldn't have cared. This Faith did. "Been there, done that, he's all yours now."

"Oh," the girl nods decisively. "Right. Glad we got that sorted. It's interesting to finally meet you. They talk about you a lot. I'm Anya."

Faith tries not to think about the gang talking about her. About the things they would say, which would undoubtedly be scathing, because they're describing the Old Faith. They wouldn't be talking about _her._ The girl sitting, pretty terrified out of her damn mind, on the Summers family couch while her ex-friends were standing just out of hearing range (even Slayer hearing) and probably talking about her. The New Faith. Shit.

"Aren't you gonna go talk about me with them?" Faith jerks her head towards the doorway everyone else exited out of, then realises she's slipping into a rude tone of voice. "And hey, Anya."

"Eh," Anya shrugs. "You murdered a couple people and stole someone's body. I've seen worse. I've _done_ worse."

Faith's stomach pitches at the mention of her past, but it's quickly eclipsed by Anya's following statements. She opens her mouth to speak, but Anya cuts her off.

"And you said sorry. And you're not gonna do it again. Like me," she smiles proudly.

"Wicked," Faith says slowly, trying to fit together the pieces. As much as she tries, though, they aren't coming together. Who _was_ this girl? What the hell had she done that was worse?

At least the upside is that Anya has done worse, and she's still a member of the Scooby Gang. Faith lets out a tense breath she didn't realise she was holding. If they accepted Anya, maybe there was hope for her.


	2. Chapter One

**A/N: And so it begins. I'm going to try and keep this as a one chapter per episode kind of deal, just so y'all know.**

 **Again, I can't thank my wonderful beta Alkeni enough. This story isn't what it is without you. Also big love to Katie, whose constant encouragement and support in all areas of life really make this possible.**

 **Disclaimer: Maybe for Christmas.**

* * *

 _The second night Faith was in Sunnydale, she visited Buffy's grave._

 _She hadn't intended for it to be a long visit, or even an emotional one. She wanted to see it, to remind herself of everything Buffy Summers was, everything she stood for. She had apologised, partly feeling stupid for talking to an inanimate object, but partly feeling as though it was helping. Getting all the words she wanted to say off her chest, finally._

 _How she was sorry._

 _She was sorry that she betrayed her._

 _And ruined her life._

 _Sorry for everything._

 _The pain in her chest had increased as she spoke, the ache that she got whenever she thought about Buffy now multiplied tenfold when she thought about the blonde's sacrifice. Earlier that day, after she'd apologised, and the Scoobies had allowed her to begin to start anew with them, they'd sat her down and told her the whole story about Buffy's death. It was almost like a very painful reward for sharing her heart, for laying herself on the line and apologising. She was to be told the truth, let into the circle._

 _Tears started to prick at her eyes as she thought about them, the gang, all sitting in the Summers' living room, each reluctant to be the one to start talking. Once it had begun, though, there was no stopping them. Each member of the group had something to say. Something to chime in about Glory, this Hellgod they'd never told her about, and her grand plan to destroy the world. About how Dawn is - no, wait,_ ** _was_** \- _a Key with the potential to unlock the gates that would destroy the world. But Buffy wasn't going to let that happen._

 _As she stared at Buffy's grave, she thought of the way everyone's eyes had instantly welled up the moment her name was mentioned. Dawn, surprisingly, had been the one to continue speaking, even after they'd all clearly become too choked up to talk. She had talked about how Buffy had concocted this amazing plan to keep her safe. How she'd climbed up the tower. How Glory had opened the portal anyway._

 _Faith choked up as she remembered Dawn talking about Buffy jumping off that ledge so she didn't have to. By this point, everyone in the room was crying, and no one could seem to stop. When Dawn's words became more sobs than sounds, Faith had laid a hand on the girl's shoulder, grateful they were sitting beside one another. It wasn't much, but she'd felt Dawn lean into it. Seek comfort from it. The idea that they were heading for 'Okay' again had caused Faith to relax, even though her heart was breaking all over again._

 _Faith was jarred from her memories by a sound in the cemetery behind her. The unmistakable noise of footsteps on grass. Combined with the fact that her Slayer sense was tingling, she could tell it was a vamp. Spinning, she launched herself at the attacker, tackling him to the ground. They rolled, and she sprang to her feet easily, lowering herself into a defensive crouch while she waited for him to get up._

 _And waited some more._

 _Recognition came to her easily. This was Spike. She'd flirted with him once, in Buffy's body. He was a vampire, without a doubt. So why wasn't he fighting back?_

 _"Lemme guess. Leather pants, doe eyes, holier-than-thou glower. You must be Faith."_

 _"Oh, goodie. A vamp who knows my name. C'mon," she gestured that he should get up, but the blonde remained lying on the grass._

 _"Bit of a misunderstanding here, see I'm-"_

 _"Spike," she cut him off. Yes, this was Spike. Vampire. Bad guy. Guy she could fight. And should be fighting. But why wasn't he getting up? "I know. We've met before. Now get your ass up off the ground before I do it for you." Her bravado was entirely false, but she'd hoped he didn't see through it. She couldn't fight someone who was lying down. Couldn't fight someone who didn't fight back. That was too much like the Old Faith._

 _"I'm on your side now," Spike smirked, and it irritated her to no end. She wanted to hit him. If only he'd pick his bleached ass off the grass._

 _"I'm reformed," Faith bit back._

 _"_ _Doesn't mean you have to dust me,_ _" Spike pulled himself up onto his elbows, and Faith's muscles tensed in preparation. "I can't even hit the good guys any more."_

 _"Bullshit."_

 _"Didn't the gang tell you 'bout me?" he seemed genuinely miffed at their lack of communication. "I'm chipped. Can't do a bloody thing to your lot. Only get to hit demons and the like."_

 _"So you're fighting for good now?" she questioned, trying to fit it together. "Like Angel?"_

 _"I'm nothing like Angel!" Spike sat up suddenly, and Faith dropped lower into a fighting stance._

 _"So you're bad?"_

 _"Yeah."_

 _Faith lunged, and he held up his hands in defence._

 _"But I fight for good. You get it? We're on the same side."_

 _"You think I'm stupid?" Faith said incredulously, but something in the back of her mind whispered that he might be telling the truth. Angel was a vampire fighting for good, so why couldn't Spike?_

* * *

Spike goes flying past Faith's head, and it's enough to snap her out of her memories. The vamp that's thrown him whirls on Faith, and she delivers a solid kick to his side that knocks him off-balance. Tara's spell-gone-wrong earlier might have made him peppy, but she can be peppier. _Is that a word?_ Ducking one of the vamp's fists as it flies at her, she scoots around the vamp and reverses their positions so she's now between Giles and the vamp. As she lands a right hook to his jaw, Spike leaps on the vamp's back in a flash of bleached hair and black duster.

 **[Faith].**

Willow's voice in her head is still catching her off-guard, despite the fact that they've been practicing this since she came back to Sunnydale.

"What?" she snaps, distracted enough that the vamp's next swing grazes her cheek. _Shit_. She's got to pay more attention.

 **[Go help Anya and Xander].**

Then Willow's gone. It's weird, even still, how Willow's presence in her mind feels almost physical. She can tell when the redhead is just hovering, then again when she's gone. The first few times they'd tried it, Faith had actually shouted when she felt Willow enter her brain. It felt _way_ too personal. _Way_ too invasive. And yet, it was helping. In a way.

Faith leaves Spike and Giles to fight their fight, and starts in a dead sprint towards where Xander and Anya are clearly struggling with a vampire of their own. Out of the corner of her eye, Faith spies the Buffybot, dressed as impeccably as always, headed towards the same vamp. The Bot gets there first, disengaging Xander from the vamp's grip and refocusing its attention on her. The shift allows Faith to get the drop on the vampire, tackling it from the side just as it prepares to lunge at the Buffybot.

As Faith fights alongside the robot, she can't help but notice how strange it is compared to fighting with Buffy. This robot is mechanical, methodical, effective, but it lacks B's emotion, passion, and most of all, her puns.

When Faith had first found out about the Buffybot, she hadn't been exactly thrilled.

* * *

 _She'd been upstairs showering, and she came downstairs with her clothes tucked under one arm. The first thing she'd seen had been the backs of Willow and Tara and in the living room, and as she descended the staircase, she saw more of the gang. Anya and Xander were there, and Giles. And Spike. And beside Spike…_

 _Faith's heart stopped at the familiar head of blonde hair, all she could make out among the tangle of people. She skipped the last four steps, choosing to leap straight to the floor, and the slight thud made the gang turn and look at her. She crossed to them in a few steps, and froze instantly when she saw her._

 _Buffy._

 _The clothes slipped from Faith's grip and_ _dropped_ _quietly to the floor as she stared at the sight before her. Buffy. Dressed in a skirt, loose blouse and leather jacket. It's a clothing set Faith had never seen before, but then again, she had been gone for a long time. Buffy's head was tilted slightly as she looked at Faith, eyes glazed over just the tiniest bit, but her brow furrowed._

 _"Buffy?" Faith's voice was quiet, but she didn't dare make it any louder. She was pretty sure that if she did, she would end up bursting into tears, or just losing her voice altogether. Maybe shattering into a million pieces. She felt like that right about now._

 _"Faith, it's not-" Tara began, reaching out to touch Faith's shoulder with one hand. It was contact that Faith barely registered, instead too focused on the girl in front of her, the one she'd thought was… gone._

 _"Hi, I'm Buffy," Buffy stuck out her hand abruptly, grinning brighter than any time Faith had ever seen. Too bright._

 _Fury rose up in Faith quickly, and she could swear that her body temperature rose a hundred degrees in a minute._

 _"What," she growled, her eyes gliding to every member of the group, "did you do to her?"_

 _"Nothing!" Willow rushed in. "It's not Buffy."_

 _"I am Buffy," Buffy chirped, and her voice alone drew Faith's gaze back. She looked so healthy. So happy._

 _"Spike?" Tara said quietly, catching the vampire's attention. "Could you…?" she gestured to the kitchen, and Spike took hold of Buffy's elbow, whispered something in her ear, and led her out of the room. A few moments later, he returned, and Faith thought it was just lucky she was so confused and hurt that she'd lost the ability to speak, or else she'd be freaking the hell out right now._

 _"That's not Buffy," Spike's voice was slightly rough, like it was hard for him to say the words._

 _"You sure?" Faith knew her own voice was just as rough, but she pushed through it. "Cause it sure as_ ** _fuck_** _looked like her."_

 _"It's a robot," Tara's voice soothed her anger, as it tended to do, but her words made Faith feel like the ground was tilting a little. Wait, make that a lot._

 _"Spike had it made a while back," Willow offered slowly._

 _"And stopped using it soon after," the vampire in question interjected._

 _Willow nodded her acknowledgement, and continued. "We were thinking we can reprogram it and keep it on so no one outside of us knows she's gone."_

 _"What?" Faith whirled to face Giles. "You're letting this happen?"_

 _"It's best if it's seen that she never left here," Giles started, continuing to talk even as Faith opened her mouth to reply. "If social services found out, they would take Dawn away."_

 _"Not to mention all the demons that'd love to come play in a Slayer-free zone," Xander piped up._

 _"Hey," Faith spun to face him. "I'm still a Slayer."_

 _"But none of them know you. Word hasn't gotten out that you're here yet. They'll still come."_

 _"I can reprogram it, I know it," Willow tried to diffuse the situation, and Faith had to give her points for it. They seem to have all talked about this without her, and now made the final decision while she was right upstairs. Not that she should have been surprised. They're the Scooby Gang. She's just Faith._

 _"Reprogram it?" Faith's brain seemed to take a moment to catch up with the conversation, which she figures is fair given all the trauma it went through in the last few minutes. "What was it programmed to before?"_

 _The group all shared a look, and Faith cocked an eyebrow. "Okay, there's clearly somethin' everyone's not tellin' me."_

 _"It was designed for more… unconventional uses," Giles finally managed, and Faith's brow furrowed._

 _"Huh?"_

 _"Sex," Anya spoke up for the first time, and Faith thanked whatever deity put that woman in Sunnydale. Then her brain catches up with her again._

 _"Sex?" she looked over at the man that had supposedly had this robot created. "You wanted a robot that looked like Buffy just so you could have sex with it?" And hell, it wasn't even a robot that just looked like Buffy, this robot practically could have been Buffy. It had the tiny furrow between her brows that Faith noticed would only disappear when she was eating or sleeping. The exact colour of her eyes. It was freaky. And wrong. Spike wanted a Slayer sexbot?_

 _Spike pursed his lips. "I regret it now, okay?"_

 _"Dude," Faith tried to push away all the images that started to float into her brain of Spike and the robot together. "That's wicked wrong._ _Fuck_ _, no matter how much I wanted her, I woulda never gone that far." Faith realised what she'd said, and immediately tried to backtrack. "I mean, y'know, anyone who wants someone like that should… well…" She trailed off, her brain too overwhelmed at the moment to think of a witty coverup or backtrack._

 _"On that note," Giles replaced his glasses on his nose, and Faith only just realised that he'd been cleaning them. "I do believe you should start looking into the programming and rewiring."_

 _"I'll help," Xander chimed in immediately._

 _"Xander," Anya whined, gripping his elbow. "You said you'd come home and we could spend all of tonight in bed having sex."_

 _Faith noticed the reactions to Anya's bluntness varied from an eyeroll to another glasses polish, to Xander's hushed "Ahn, we talked about this." Faith personally loved the fact that Anya always spoke her mind. It wasn't a quality she found often in other people. Then again, she'd learned recently that Anya wasn't a person. Well, she was now. But she was an ex-demon, which was the biggest surprise. Also a strange comfort to Faith. She was reformed. She worked with them. That was good._

 _Faith noticed, as the group started to head for the kitchen, Spike pulled Willow to one side. Her enhanced hearing allowed her to hear Spike's whispered request._

 _"You'll remove_ ** _everything,_** _right?"_

 _"I'll do it."_

 _"Willow."_

 _"I know. I promise. She'll know you. But none of those comments we kept hearing."_

 _"They hurt me as much as they hurt you, pet."_

* * *

After Faith and the Buffybot stake the vampire, the brunette helps Xander to his feet.

 **[Guys]**

Faith can tell from Xander's slight jump, and Anya's turn to look over at Willow, that the redhead has spoken to all of their minds.

 **[That's all of them. We're done for tonight. Meet Spike and Giles by the crypt they were fighting at]**

"Thanks Willow!" Xander calls loudly, and Faith rolls her eyes at him.

* * *

"I was hoping we could go over your programming," Willow suggests to the Buffybot the next morning at breakfast.

"Again?" Faith asks around a mouthful of peanut butter and jelly sandwich. At Tara's glare, she swallows, then continues. "If ya don't got it by now, ya don't got it." As soon as the words leave her mouth, she watches Willow's reaction, and realises she's said the wrong thing. "Sorry!" she says quickly.

"It's okay," the redhead concedes, and Faith's grateful they're making progress. It's still not Easy Street, but at least she's finding it much easier to say sorry, and the gang are learning to accept it. She's truly sorry every time, which is also a huge plus. It feels nice.

"Do you think you'll be okay at the parent/teacher day today?" Tara asks Dawn.

"I think we can do it," Dawn glances at the Buffybot.

"Want me to come with ya, Squirt?" Faith snatches another PB and J that the Buffybot has piled up, then nudges Dawn.

"I don't know," the teen looks over at Willow and Tara.

"I'd like Faith to come," Buffybot pipes up, placing yet another completed PB and J on the stack. Faith notices she's getting quite the collection, and so she grabs one of the Buffybot's hands to get her attention.

"Unstart," she says awkwardly. It still hasn't gotten much easier for her to talk to the Buffybot over time. She looks too much like the real thing. Looking at her face, knowing there's not really a brain in that beautiful head of hers, not seeing that familiar spark of irritation and amusement that the real Buffy always seemed to have whenever she'd looked at Faith.

It hadn't taken too long for Willow to program Faith into the Buffybot. Especially once Faith convinced her to leave out a lot of her old mistakes, and all the things she'd done wrong, instead giving the Buffybot just base knowledge such as 'Faith was bad, now she's trying to be good'. Which was, in its simplest form, the real reason she was here. It'd made Faith feel a little better watching Willow tap away at her computer keys, practically recreating her with every stroke. This Buffy knew nothing about how much pain they'd been through together. But, then again, wasn't that part of their story? Their history?

Faith drops the Buffybot's hand as soon as she's given the command, and Buffybot smiles brightly at her.

"I helped!"

"That you did," Tara touches her shoulder gently.

"I am here!" Xander calls, entering through the back door. "I am a man! I have tools!"

"Debatable," Faith smirks, then tosses him a PB and J. "Catch."

The sandwich hits Xander's chest, but he does manage to get a grip on it before it hits the ground.

"My skills are unparalleled," he says in response to the light laughter from the females of the room. "What're we talking about?"

"I want Faith to come," Buffybot repeats, earning stares from the small group.

"I need to make some final adjustments on the Buffybot to prepare her for today," Willow tells him, gesturing at the toolbox he's brought with him. "Thanks for that."

"Can Faith come?" the Buffybot asks, focusing her too-intense gaze on Willow. "I'd like Faith to come."

"Boy," Xander takes a bite out of the sandwich in her hand. "She loves her new friend."

"We're still working out some things," Willow defends quickly. "Dawn, it's up to you."

"I mean, Buffybot might be easier to handle with two of us, right?" Dawn throws a glance at Faith, who grins easily. They're not best buds, but she's grateful Dawn's actually talking to her. And not completely rejecting the idea of having Faith come along and help out. Baby steps, right?

"She has to be convincing," Xander reminds the group.

"Thank you Captain _Duh_ ," Faith jokes, then realises that could come across as rude. "I mean, of course she will be. Red's got her fixed up real nice."

"What do I have to be convincing at?" Buffybot directs this question at Tara, who seems unsure of how to answer.

"Because we don't want Dawn to be taken away," she says patiently. "Remember?"

"Right!" Buffybot nods eagerly. "Cause she's my sister. And I love my sister. No one will take her away."

Faith takes another bite of her remaining sandwich half and casts a look at Dawn, who is too busy staring at the counter to notice much else.

"Hey," Faith says quietly, half a second before the phone starts to ring. Ignoring the commotion following it, Dawn looks over at the older girl. "You're not goin' anywhere, kid. You're stuck with us."

"Who was that?" Dawn asks when Willow hangs up the phone.

"Judging by the fact Willow just passed on the message about ol' Xander being her 'sugar cookie' my money's on his honey," Faith answers in place of the wicca.

"She's right," Willow agrees after a second, and Faith's glad she's starting to say that a little more often and with a little less sour look on her face.

"What did she want?" Dawn continues with her line of questioning. "

"Just to check in about the Scooby meeting tonight," Willow answers. "Faith, are you still good to watch Dawn?"

"Yeah, of course," she answers.

Initially, it' had hurt when they left her out of gang meetings. It'd been hard, very reminiscent of her first visit to Sunnydale, where they seemed to make it a habit of neglecting to invite her to meetings or debriefings. But then she remembered that this time, they had reasons. They had a legitimate reason too. She got to be the one to stay at home with Dawn. Not that she minded, of course. She'd actually managed to bond with the kid pretty well, given everything, and Dawn had taken to not only replying when spoken to, but actually initiating contact, which was a nice bonus in Faith's eyes. So it wasn't as bad this time, knowing they were having meetings without her. Willow or Tara would usually come home and tell her about it all anyway.

They'd almost developed a routine, if the witches came home at a reasonable enough hour. Tara would sit on the couch and debrief Faith on what she needed to know, what they were changing, facing or investigating, and Willow would make tea. Then they'd sit and watch cartoons, Faith would make up the couch, and they'd all go to bed. So no, she didn't mind watching Dawn. Not if there were positives she could focus on.

"We're gonna have fun," Faith smirks at her charge, and Dawn gives a small smile back.

"Spike said he'll be here too, if that's okay?" Tara looks between the two of them. Faith nods easily. When she'd first met the vamp, she would have had a problem with it, given the fact that he was, well, a vamp. And then he'd brought the godforsaken robot, and she'd been washed with a fresh set of doubts. But she had to keep reminding herself that he'd said it was who he'd been in the past. Just like with her. The old versions of them did bad things. The new versions them were trying. Trying to do better. Be better.

She's seen him with Dawn. Seen how protective he was of her. Sometimes even volunteering to stay home from patrol to look after her. Ready to jump in front of a bullet for her, if that's what it took. Well, maybe not a bullet, because hello, vampire. But she's got no doubt he'd jump in front of a stake for Dawn. She's seen that kind of devotion before. He's a good guy, she figures, and it's not like they don't get along well. Within the first week or so after the Buffybot incident, she'd tried to give him a chance. And he was actually half-way decent. They're similar in a lot of ways, she's found, and it means they have bond in a way she doesn't have with anyone else in the group, except maybe Anya. Initially, she wasn't entirely comfortable with being friends with a vamp without a soul, but he'd proven himself enough to her. Angel was fighting for good, and so was Spike. The difference being that the former had a soul, but if the Scoobies trusted Spike, she could too.

"How was it?" Tara practically leaps up from the couch the moment they walk through the door that afternoon. She and Willow are on their feet and in the doorway within seconds, twin expressions of worry on their faces.

"Did she behave?"

"Did she say anything wrong?"

"Did anyone pick up on it?"

"Tell me she didn't short circuit!"

"Guys!" Faith interrupts as gently as she can, a smirk threatening to lift her lips. "Let the kid breathe, alright?" Dawn hasn't even dropped her backpack by this point; they've been in the house for all of about two seconds and already got the third degree.

"I'm okay," Dawn insists, then flashes Willow and Tara a smile. "Yeah, she did great."

"I was a good student!" Buffybot pipes up cheerily, and Faith's heart hurts a little as she claps the robot on the shoulder.

"Yeah, ya were." It was true enough. Buffybot was the epitome of a perfect student. The exact sort of person Faith would have wanted to deck if she was still in high school. Or if she'd finished high school. Something about the robot's genuine honesty and bluntness really resonated with the teachers, and Faith's starting to think that maybe she could have passed at least one class if she'd acted the way Buffybot acted today.

Their little gang follows Tara into the kitchen, and Faith smiles a little as the Buffybot pops up onto the stool beside Dawn.

"I had a good day today," she says, as Tara pours Dawn a glass of juice. "I had a good day with my sister Dawn and Faith. Did you have a good day Dawn?"

"Yeah, thanks," Dawn answers, her smile a little too small and a little too forced to pass as comfortable in Faith's eyes. "We passed."

Faith thanks Tara quietly when the other girl places a glass of juice in front of her. Dawn's choice of words makes her feel strange. She passed. It's not a feeling she's used to, but she can see why people aim for it. It's pretty nice. Not unlike her training with Angel, and the way she felt when she made progress on that.

* * *

"Nice work!" Faith encourages Dawn when the card she's tossed glances off the banana they're practicing on.

"I barely even touched it," the teen complains. "Show me again."

"Okay," Faith lines it up. "Gotta stand like this, right?" she drops into a crouch. "Ready?" At Dawn's nod, she flicks the playing card from her fingertips. It spins across the room with grace, leaving a deep slash in the skin of the banana. "Get it?"

"Got it," Dawn tries to imitate her stance, and Faith starts to adjust her grip when there's a knock at the door.

"Spike!" Dawn places the deck of cards on the counter, leaving Faith in the kitchen while she makes her way to the front of the house. Faith places the cards in her hand on top of Dawn's, and pulls out a stool. She can hear Spike's echoing call of "Niblet!" when the door is opened, and within moments, Dawn has reappeared in the kitchen, the bleached vampire trailing behind.

"Faith," Spike greets her with a nod.

"Spike," she nods back, then props her elbows up on the counter. "What sorta pizza you got?"

"Half pepperoni for the Bit, half steak for me. Take your pick."

Faith's happy to see that they're actually getting along pretty well, the three of them. She'd always figured she and Spike would get along pretty well, especially once he worked it was her who was in Buffy's body, that one time they met in the Bronze.

Spike flips open the box and the three of them each take a slice.

"Hey, wasn't it that parent/teacher thing today?" Spike says around a mouthful of pizza.

"Yeah, it was," Dawn nods. "We survived. It was a pretty successful day all around."

"You don't sound convinced."

Faith smirks to herself. She knew it wasn't just her that heard it.

"Buffybot was a hit," Faith chimes in.

"My homeroom teacher _loved_ her," Dawn bites her pizza and swallows with a slight eyeroll. It's not as advanced as Buffy's used to be, but she clearly learnt from the best.

"An example to us all!" Faith exaggerates, throwing her arms out to the side.

"She wanted to make it National Buffy Day."

The day had gone smooth enough. Buffybot had behaved, for the most part, and there were no real problems. Sure, they'd had hiccups. Buffybot made some comments about the dioramas, which Dawn easily dismissed. She tried making conversation with some moody teens, which Faith easily diverted. And sure, she made certain remarks in class that drew a hell of a lot of attention, but it wasn't the bad kind. Faith had been less than an inch from leaping up and hauling Buffybot back into her seat, but the other parents and the teacher started to relate to her, so she'd let it go. Dawn had whispered a comment about how she wanted to be anywhere but here, and Faith had been inclined to agree.

"Makes sense," Spike shrugs as he eats another slice of pizza.

"It does?" Dawn cocks her head. Faith fights the urge to copy her.

"She responded because a robot is predictable. Boring. Perfect teacher's pet."

Faith nodded every time Spike made a statement. She'd gone to school with a few robot-like students. Looking back, she was pretty sure that they _weren't_ actually robots, but she couldn't be 100% positive.

"That's how schools are, y'know. Factories. Spewing out mindless little automatons."

"Yeah!" Faith can't help but join in. She's not sure where Spike's position on the issue is coming from, but they seem to have similar viewpoints. She shoves the remains of her pizza slice in her mouth and locates three cups. "That's why I quit," she continues once she's swallowed. "Don't fit no mould. They can't hold me down."

"Robots. All of 'em," Spike agrees while she pours the drinks. As she places them on the counter, her and Spike seem to remember Dawn's presence at the same time, eyes widening in unison.

"But good robots that are great people in the big bad world," Faith tries to cover up.

"Valuable and productive members of society," Spike adds. "Stay in school."

Dawn is looking at them like they're the biggest pair of idiots in the universe, and Faith worries for a moment that they've actually driven the teen to decide to drop out.

"So," Spike picks up the banana they'd been using for target practice earlier. It's got three open gashes down one side, courtesy of Faith, and a few tiny scrapes from Dawn's attempts. "You guys run outta knives or what?"

"Faith's teaching me to throw cards!"

Spike raises one dark eyebrow at the Slayer, who shrugs. "It's fun. Cool party trick. Handy skill."

"Handy how?" Spike is still inspecting the banana, testing the slice with his fingers. He picks up one playing card and starts running it along the outside, only succeeding in bending the cardboard.

"Where'd you even learn to do it?" Dawn asks, and Faith shrugs. "Was it in prison?"

Faith looks at the other brunette, eyes wide and mouth open in a small 'o'. How's she even supposed to answer that?

"Yeah," she replies slowly.

"Why?" Dawn's curiosity clearly can't be tamed, and Faith looks over at Spike for help. Is it okay for her to be telling stories about her prison time? Would Willow and Tara approve? Would _Buffy?_

Spike shrugs a little in his usual indifferent way, and Faith hasn't known him long enough to be able to discern what his eyes are saying behind their bright blue curtain.

"Cards aren't seen as a weapon in prison. Ya can toss 'em at someone if they're gettin' too close or threatenin' to mess you up."

"Neat," Dawn nods as understanding settles in. "Teach me more?"

Realising she's basically just told Dawn that she's going to be teaching her how to slice people, Faith tries to backtrack as fast as she can.

"Anyway, it's not that important in real life. Wanna play Monopoly?"

As they finish off their pizza and fish out the Monopoly board, Dawn speaks up.

"You guys don't have to stay, you know. You can patrol, or go to the Scooby meeting?"

"Wasn't invited, Bit," Spike shrugs.

"Plus, we said we'd hang here and make sure ya didn't get into too much trouble," Faith laughs a little.

"I'm okay, really," Dawn insists, and Spike whirls to face her from where he's standing in the middle of the room. His face is stormy, and Faith notices Dawn lean back just the slightest amount when she catches the darkened shade of his eyes. Faith doesn't know him all that well, but she does know anger. She knows anger rooted in hurt better than she knows almost any emotion. And she can see it starting to build on Spike's face.

"Hey," Faith literally steps in between them, wondering somewhere in the back of her mind when she became mediator in this scenario. "Honestly Squirt, I don't wanna be anywhere but here. Not sure about Bleach Boy," she throws a glare at Spike that reads 'calm the fuck down' as clear as she can make it, "but I'm sticking around."

Looking back at Spike, she watches the hurt in his eyes. The guilt, the anguish. The feeling of knowing you could have done better. You could have _been_ better. It's worse than looking into a mirror, and she looks away, praying Spike finds the inner strength it took her way too long to discover. She has no idea what's caused this flare-up, but she'd prefer if it went back to normal, please and thank you.

"Now," Faith says slowly, looking between the two of them. She tries to convey a 'we'll talk later' to Spike via glare, but it doesn't seem to be working. "We're gonna sit down and play a game, yeah?"

She hears two soft echoes in return.

The rest of the night passes without much incident. After Dawn's in bed, and Faith and Spike are watching a late-night soap and complaining about it, the Buffybot comes home damaged. Faith watches as Spike tenderly directs the robot to sit down, and tells her to wait for Willow. When the redhead does arrive home, she fixes Buffybot up, and Faith holds the flashlight as she watches Spike's heartbreak play out on his face. She has no idea what's gone down, but she knows it's something.

The following day, Faith trains with Giles and the Buffybot. It's weird to be fighting with the carbon copy of her twin Slayer, yet having it be such a different experience. Instead of Giles stopping their sparring sessions to correct technique or posture (which he still does to Faith), it's more about stopping and reminding the Buffybot to breathe. To try and copy the rise and fall of Faith's chest, the way she allows her breath to flow through her and make it a part of her slaying.

It's weird to train with a robot. A real physical and emotional workout. Faith relishes in the physicality of it all. Like Buffy, the Buffybot knows all the moves. She is just as skilled as her real-life counterpart. Emotionally, it's hard to stare into the Buffybot's eyes and know there's nothing staring back at her but wiring and mechanics. No spark. No fire. No wit or charm or memories. Just programming. It kills her.

Later that day, when the Scoobies find out that Giles is at the airport, Faith's surprised that they tell her to come along. She rides in the car feeling out of place, like the gang is a tight-knit group and she's just the awkward friend hanging off the edge. They do help her to pick something small for Giles at the gas station, and Dawn prints her name as carefully as the bouncing road will allow, double-checking that it's spelled right. It's something, she supposes.

Giles hugs her as he says goodbye. She doesn't think they've ever had contact outside of training, and it's weird to feel his arms around her. This man. Her once-Watcher, ex-friend, now-something. She hopes he thinks of them as friends, especially considering he's going halfway across the world.

"You have made so much progress, Faith," he murmurs quickly as he hugs her. "I'm proud of you."

Giles' words floor her for a long moment. Proud of her? Proud of her progress?

Her first time around, she had always known Giles saw the world through Buffy-coloured glasses. She was the first Slayer. The best. The favourite. Nothing Faith did or said would ever match up to that. And she knew it. It had been hard to come to a place where Buffy, so like herself in so many ways, had a life, and family, and friends. Where she had people who adored her and looked after her, and that's all Faith had ever craved. Looking back, she thinks that she craved the father/daughter bond that Giles and Buffy had, so that's why she loved being with the Mayor. He treated her right, and he treated her like she was important. Like he loved her, just like Giles loved Buffy. He would tell her he was proud of her and that he was amazed by her and all of it meant everything at the time. Now, however, it was a different story.

Giles' words replay in her mind on a constant loop. He's proud of her and her progress. Old Faith was happy with the Mayor's praise. Was willing to do whatever the hell it took to get someone to notice her and love her. And so she did. This time around, it's the good stuff she's doing. She knows she'll never be his favourite. But with his pride tucked into her belt, she doesn't need to be.

After they wave goodbye to Giles, the day passes quickly, until the next thing she knows, She and Spike are getting drink refills in the kitchen while Dawn flicks through TV channels in the living room and tries to find something half-decent to watch. She knows she could have gone patrolling tonight, but without the whole gang here to ensure Dawn's safety, she's not sure she'd be entirely comfortable with the idea. She couldn't let something happen to Dawn. Not to Buffy's baby sister.

"I'm still right pissed at the gang for not letting us tag along," Spike opened the fridge, peered inside, and shut it again.

"Someone's gotta make sure Dawn's okay," Faith opens the freezer in search of some ice. "Plus, we're not official 'Scooby Gang'."

"What, they've got soddin' pins or something? Like 'ooh, you can't be in our club'," Spike scoffs. "Don't get me wrong, I love hanging with Niblet, but it's not the same, y'know?"

Faith shrugs. By this point, she's learned to get used to it. If she sat around moping like she did her first year in Sunnydale, she'd probably end up the same way. And that wasn't an option. On the upside, it always seemed to be the three of them left alone, which she didn't mind. They were their own mini-team. Spike, her, and - _CRASH_.

Both her and Spike race towards the living room at the noise, drinks instantly forgotten, before realising that the noise came from down the street. Dawn's already up and at the window, peering out into the night.

"Demons," she says simply.

Faith crosses the room in a few long strides, Spike right behind her. One hand lands on Dawn's shoulder as she looks through the glass. The demons are tall, but that's not unusual to Faith. They're dressed in the sort of getup she'd associate with biker gangs, not that there were many of them where she'd come from. As the demons toss furniture through windows and rumble down the streets on motorbikes, she can see their deformed faces, pierced more than anyone or anything she'd ever seen. And they're clearly here to start shit, with the sheer destruction they're causing. Already, fires are erupting at various points along the street, some inside houses. They're ruthless in their approach, and Faith backs away from the window, suddenly thinking this house is too vulnerable.

Spike follows her lead, coming away from the window and dragging Dawn with him.

"Stay away from the windows," Spike starts to tell the teen, and Faith dashes off to check that none of their windows or doors have been compromised. She yells at Spike to check the downstairs, and she'll check up. She's racing down after completing her sweep, only to find Dawn at a window again, the curtain pushed back so she can see. Spike's muttering something to himself over by the weapons chest as he digs around, then recoils in pain with a small tendril of smoke winding upwards from his hand.

"They're moving," Dawn says suddenly, and Spike's at her side in an instant.

"I thought I told you to stay away from the windows," he reprimands gently.

"They're headed this way," Dawn's voice is slightly shaky, but Faith is proud of how calm she's outwardly appearing. For a kid her age, she's had to deal with a lot of shit.

"Take Dawn," Faith practically shoves the younger brunette at Spike, who's looking at her as though she's sprouted a second head.

"We need to wait for the others," Dawn pipes up, and Faith looks down at her. She opens her mouth, but it's Spike who speaks.

"We don't have time. You have to stay safe."

"We have to wait for them!" Dawn repeats.

"I'm sorry," Faith tells her, and she truly is. It sucks to be whisked away from where you want to be, and your safe place, and waiting on the people you love. She can't imagine how Dawn's feeling. "Spike's going to take you away. Keep you safe." Dark eyes rise up to meet the vampires in an unspoken question, and he nods once, his hands circling Dawn's shoulders.

"C'mon, Bit, we need to go."

"Wait!" Dawn says one last time, and Faith presses a quick kiss to her forehead before spinning on her heel and racing over to the weapons chest. She can hear Dawn shouting after her, asking why she can't come, why they can't stay. Spike murmurs aren't loud enough to be audible, but they're a low hum that obviously intends to bring comfort to the girl as they head out the back door.

"Just go," she cries after them, wondering if they hear her. Hoping they do. They need to stay safe. She needs to keep them safe.

Faith races out to the street to fight the demons before they have a chance to attack the Summers' house. She can feel the adrenaline already starting to flow through her veins, the sense of peace that comes just before a fight when she knows they're gonna lose and she's gonna win. She takes a flying leap at the first one, who just so happens to be straddling a motorcycle with his back facing her. She tackles him to the ground, rolling easily and springing to her feet. By this point, a few of the other demons nearby have taken notice of her, and they're starting to move her way.

"Oh, goodie," she grins widely. "Let's party."

It's like a ballet. The moves come without thought, without worry, and she feels her muscles ease into the dance of battle without a fight. The neck of the first demon snaps within twenty seconds, and the few that have gathered freeze for a second to watch. She flashes them a smile, then gets back to the ass-kicking.

She notices after the first few that they're all muscle and no skill. Not built for slayage at all, mostly just built to break shit. But she's small, and quick. Much quicker than they are. She ducks under their thrown punches and spins around their lunging bodies.

"Come on," one of the bigger ones shouts, just after she's plunged her knife into the fourth demon's chest. "We can't get beaten by a girl!"

"You're not gonna get beaten by a girl," Faith smirks, delivering a solid right hook to another demon's jaw. "You're gonna get beaten by the Slayer."

"The Slayer?"

She can see the shock on their faces, read it in the lines of their bodies. They weren't aware she was coming. Of course.

"We thought the Slayer was dead?!" a demon just to her right says in surprise, and he earns a knife to the chest for that comment. The blow feels like Faith's driving the weapon into her own chest, with the severity of pain that's taken up residence there.

"Think again," is all she says, before lunging for a demon a few feet away.

After the few in the street have been disposed of or run away, Faith turns in a slow circle and surveys her environment. There are fires inside houses, broken windows, furniture and possessions strewn across front lawns like every house is having a broken, flaming yard sale. She's tempted to start fixing it, but her muscles seem to know that there's more slaying to be done, taking her away from the mess and further down the street, in the direction of where the two demons she'd missed had fled to.

She manages to kill four more demons - they were even in a convenient little group, just what every Slayer wants! - before she slows to a walk, still wandering the streets. Her adrenaline has started to slow a little, but her body is still screaming at her. All that talk to Buffy about slaying making her hungry and horny was completely rooted in truth. To work it off, she thinks of where the Scooby Gang could be, or where Spike and Dawn are. She didn't see which way they went after they left Revello Drive, which leaves her at kind of a standstill now. Except, her standstill is more like a stand-walk, as she strolls down the road. There's faint shouting that she's just picking up, so she head in that direction.

A few minutes later and there's the unmistakable sound of a motorcycle heading for her, and if she squints, she can see someone running in front of it too. The girl - she can tell by the long, flowing hair - seems to be heading for an alleyway, and Faith lets her run past, stepping in at just the right time to throw the demon on the bike off balance. He skids under his vehicle for about ten feet, then she puts a knife in his chest to ensure he's dead.

Faith enters the alley that she'd seen the girl run into, and when she notes there's a giant chain-link fence, she scales it easily and drops over the other side. The girl's standing here, shaking violently, and she spins at the noise of Faith's feet hitting the ground. When she turns, it's obvious to Faith that it's the Buffybot, though she's dressed much differently than Faith remembers. Her hair's also a total mess, and there must be a problem with her wiring because her eyes look vacant and dark.

"Gee, you look positively _great,_ " Faith teases the robot. When there's no answer, she tries again. "When'd ya get time to change your clothes?" There's still no answer, so Faith looks closer at the Buffybot. Dark eyes skim over the robot's form, looking for obvious signs of damage. As she takes a step closer - in that millisecond before the Buffybot takes a step back - she recognises something she has not felt in a long time. As a Slayer, she's quickly learned her extra sense could help her pick up on vamps in the area. Or demons. Or witches. Basically, every supernatural being had a signature imprint. And this one is unique. As in, ' _One Girl In All The World'_ unique. This isn't the Buffybot. This is Buffy.

Despite the fight, the adrenaline coursing through her veins, she's pretty sure her heart stops. If this is Buffy, the real Buffy, then she's not dead. She's alive again. Faith has no idea how or why she's back, but she is. And she even has that tiny goddamn crease between her brows.

"B," the familiar nickname slips past Faith's lips, and Buffy's wide, scared eyes flick to her own. It's entirely different than looking the Buffybot in the eye, and despite everything, it feels good. Like coming home, if she's being cliche about it.

She's spent too long dreaming about what it would be like to see Buffy again. What she'd say, how she'd act. Then, when she'd found out that Buffy was dead, everything had gone out the window. She'd never know how it would feel to lay eyes on the real Buffy Summers again. To apologise. The words dance at the tip of her tongue, but she knows that this is not the time, nor the place. Buffy looks like she's been through hell, which now that Faith thinks about it, she may have. Her heart stutters to life again in her chest, and she doesn't know whether she wants to scream or cry. Or maybe break down into a thousand tiny pieces.

There's a noise at the mouth of the alleyway and both Faith and Buffy spin to face it, Buffy more so out of fear, Faith in preparation to fight. Her stance relaxes as soon as she realises it's the Scoobies, but she can't help but notice that Buffy's still tense and terrified.

"Guys," Faith starts, but Willow jumps in.

"Oh no, Buffybot looks like she got messed up again."

"It's not Buffybot," Faith says, but all she gets in return are four confused and disbelieving pairs of eyes.

"No, sorry, it's Faithbot, my mistake," sarcasm drips off Xander's words, but Faith pays it no mind.

"It's not the 'bot 'cause it's the real deal." Again with the four blank stares.

"I don't know what the fuck happened but this is real Buffy and she's real scared right now," Faith turns to see if the girl in question is still behind her, but Buffy's backed herself up against the brick wall, crouching down and hugging her knees to her chest.

"You're serious?" Anya looks between Faith and Buffy.

"Sure as hell don't look like a 'bot to me," Faith joins in with the rest of the group, facing Buffy but staying a respectable distance.

A scuffle from behind them causes Faith to spin around instantly. The fight begins almost without warning, but that's mostly from the fact that the leader takes one look at Buffy and his expression is so lecherous that Faith tackles him within a fraction of a second.

They've been fighting for a few minutes when Faith realises there's an oddly familiar swish of blonde hair fighting beside her, body moving beside hers in an intricate dance only they know the steps to. Even shaken up, Buffy is a force to be reckoned with, and Faith nearly gets clipped on the jaw more than once just trying to take it all in. She's as amazing as Faith remembers and it makes her body sing just to be fighting beside Buffy again instead of the Buffybot.

They manage to eliminate all the demons, and even the rest of the Scoobies play their rather large part in the slayage.

"Wow, Buffy," Tara says, turning to face the blonde, but Buffy's already racing out of the alleyway into the darkness, leaving the Scoobies standing clueless in the dark.

Faith blinks once. Twice. "What the _fuck_ just happened?"


End file.
